“Wacko birds”: McCain and staff keep dumping on Rand Paul

posted at 10:39 am on March 8, 2013 by Allahpundit

At this point, you’d think he’d tone it down if for no other reason than that he’s doing Paul an incredible favor by continuing to pound on him. The optics simply couldn’t be better. An unsuccessful former party nominee who’s pushing 80 and known for being the most enthusiastic interventionist in American government, tearing a guy apart for making a basic constitutional point about not assassinating American citizens? What?

Don’t forget to send him a thank-you card, Rand. First, from BuzzFeed:

“Either they were drinking a lot at the Obama party or they’re just completely dismissive of what was going on,” said one senior Republican strategist. “They’re living in an alternative universe. I don’t get it at all. You have a party where there’s all this talk about how divided the establishment is from the grassroots, and then you have John McCain and Lindsey Graham come out of left field with this. People are just scratching their heads.”…

Another GOP operative called Graham and McCain “just completely out of touch.”…

“Senator McCain is obviously well aware of the politics of this – he just doesn’t care,” said one McCain aide. “He’s doing what he thinks is right. Unlike many of these guys, he’s actually been involved in a few national security debates over the years. He knows that jumping on the Rand Paul black helicopters crazytrain isn’t good for our Party or our country, no matter what Twitter says.”

“They were elected, nobody believes that there was a corrupt election, anything else,” McCain said. “But I also think that when, you know, it’s always the wacko birds on right and left that get the media megaphone.”

“I think it can be harmful if there is a belief among the American people that those people are reflective of the views of the majority of Republicans. They’re not,” he continued.

I asked McCain to clarify who, specifically, he was talking about.

“Rand Paul, Cruz, Amash, whoever,” McCain said…

“On some issues [McCain] sees him as a fellow maverick, but on some issues I think that pisses [McCain] off, having a maverick against John McCain,” said the Paul adviser, who asked to speak frankly in exchange that he not be identified. “I think he thinks Rand wants his way too much, like on [National Defense Authorization Act] … but I don’t think he thinks he’s doing it just to do it.”

It’s only the “wacko birds” who get the media megaphone? McCain, famously, has been the most ubiquitous guest on Sunday morning political talk shows for years. But wait, one more. This one’s my favorite just because it’s so revealingly petty:

McCain was quick to dismiss Paul’s nearly 13-hour effort since other Republican senators also came to speechify, giving Paul a slight break, even if the Kentucky Republican was unable to excuse himself to even use the restroom.

“Usually, traditionally it’s been one person, makes it a lot easier if you have other people talking for him,” McCain said.

He stood there for 13 hours without a bathroom break and spoke for the vast majority of it — on topic too, not by reading the phone book — but because Ted Cruz chewed up a little bit of time, the whole thing’s illegitimate.

Needless to say, if you want to marginalize Paul and the libertarians, the worst possible moment to do it is when he’s asking for a simple acknowledgment that the president can’t liquidate American citizens suspected of plotting terrorism on American soil without some sort of due process. Of all the civil-libertarian positions one could take on drones, that’s the most modest — no doubt deliberately so, as Paul knows that Obama’s refusal to grant even that much makes him look like Cheney on steroids and reduces his anti-Bush counterterror rhetoric circa 2007 to a joke. You would think Maverick might at least seize the opportunity to note that the guy who beat him five years ago did so in part by campaigning on a lie, but that would mean giving an inch of ground to the isolationists on his own side. So instead he sides with O even though everyone from Reince Priebus to Fox News to the Ron Paul fan base to Jon Stewart is patting Paul on the back, and inexplicably he insists on being nasty about it just in case anyone who enjoyed Paul’s performance hasn’t been completely alienated by McCain yet. Question for my fellow hawks: Is this really the hill to die on vis-a-vis paleocon/libertarian foreign policy? Arguing in favor of a president’s power to fire missiles at an enemy combatant on U.S. soil even if he’s a U.S. citizen and isn’t engaged in terrorism at the time when the FBI could just as easily go in and grab him? If that’s a “wacko bird” position, then a lot of people who agree with it will be left wondering whether the entire mainstream rap on libertarians and paleocons as being “fringe” and “extreme” is a lie. Maverick and Graham need to learn to pick their battles. Exit quotation via Newt: ““What I find sad about Sen. McCain’s recent comments both to Ted Cruz, when Ted Cruz was frankly raising legitimate questions [about Benghazi] and with Rand Paul, is, you know, when I first knew John McCain in the House — he was a maverick. In the Senate, for years, he was a maverick.” Yep. He’s not the maverick here anymore. That’s why he’s being so petty.

Really, Mav? “Wacko birds”? Even when Obama acts petty, he does it in a more mature manner than this. I’m glad he’s refusing to let this go however. It continues to raise Rand Paul’s national profile and makes him look like the adult in the room.

There is something wrong when our politicians think that they are so untouchable that they can take a victory in their own party and try to turn it into defeat. And then expect the same voters to vote for them in the next election.

McShame – insane, treasonous, moronic cretin who isn’t satisfied to burden society with his destructive existence but must foist his plump, stupid, useless daughter on us, too. That family is pathetic. They should all emigrate to Mexico where Juan can be closer to his constituents and farther away from us.

McShame calling anyone a “wacko bird” is too funny. McShame’s mental problems are enough to fill volumes. And he’s a detestable, nasty pr!ck with a pea-brain, to boot.

If the old guard Vichy Republicans care more about their Capitol Hill way of life than their country and their constituents, then it is time for them to get out of the way, and allow Sen. Paul, and his allies to lead the battle against this corrupt anti-American Administration.

McCain has a serious martyr complex. The only thing he’s good at it withstanding torture. Well, that and crashing planes. Was it 5 by the time his career ended? I forget. The son of an admiral, the grandson of an admiral. Probably the most self-entitled man on the public stage.

Yep, McCain is mad that he’s not the one getting picked on or beat up. He needs that adversity. That’s why he’s so mavericky. He can’t bother to lead the charge against Obama, because he’s not a leader. He’s a prisoner. Don’t blame him, it’s his only talent.

It took conviction, youth and stamina for Rand Paul to carry out that filibuster. It demonstrated the need for younger, healthier and physically fit senators. It could be the new qualification. If you can’t execute a 13 hours “talkie filibuster” than you are not fit to serve. Gotta irk these old fossils.

McCain and Graham are angry because they were exposed for the Vichy dupes they are.

While another Senator was doing the job he swore an oath to perform, McCain and Graham were having a surrender dinner with the President who has spent the last five years destroying our country.

When have McCain and Graham been so vitriolic about the many outrages this President is responsible for? How about that passionate for our democracy or Constitution? The simple answer is never over their lifelong political careers. Even the President via his AG felt the situation needed redress.

I may not be Senator Paul’s biggest fan, but it’s about time someone stood up for the Constitution. It’s also about time that people such as McCain and Graham retired. They represent not only what is wrong with our party, they represent everything that’s wrong with our country.

Y’all know that it is only a matter of time before McCain states that Gov. Palin is the reason that he lost the election. He will take some small amount of the blame for letting some young person talk him into picking her and/or that he thought Hillary would be the nominee, but ultimately he will throw her under the bus. He has a strong disdain for the populace.

“Either they were drinking a lot at the Obama party or they’re just completely dismissive of what was going on,” said one senior Republican strategist. “They’re living in an alternative universe. I don’t get it at all. You have a party where there’s all this talk about how divided the establishment is from the grassroots, and then you have John McCain and Lindsey Graham come out of left field with this. People are just scratching their heads.”…

Back up a little bit here, guys! Can you believe this? Anonymous leakers and “senior strategists” are actually coming down on the base’s side for once and against McCain! Can anyone EVER remember this happening before? Anyone?

But I also think that when, you know, it’s always the wacko birds on right and left that get the media megaphone.”

Just remember that this is the same man that al Qaeda and al Jazeera played in continuous loops saying stuff like this:

“When you have a majority of Americans, seventy-something percent, saying we shouldn’t torture, then I’m not sure it helps for the Vice President to go out and continue to espouse that position. But look, he’s free to talk. He’s a former Vice President of the United States. I just don’t see where it helps. [Cheney] believes that waterboarding doesn’t fall under the Geneva Conventions and that it’s not a form of torture. But you know, it goes back to the Spanish Inquisition.”

If McCain was so certain that the United States had “tortured” admitted terrorists, why would he believe that it would be beyond the realm of possibility to the point of ridiculousness that it might – one day – use drones to summarily execute Americans on US soil that it suspected of involvement in terror-related activities, who might pose an imminent, but not immediate, threat?

If McCain thought that it wasn’t helpful for a former Vice-President to advocate EIT “when you have a majority of Americans, seventy-something percent, saying we shouldn’t torture,” then why is it helpful for him to call the pleas of Rand Paul and other senators for the White House to clarify its position on the use of drones on Americans on US soil “REEEEEDICKULOUS! (Dontcha know?!?!?!) when you have a majority of Americans, MORE THAN seventy-something percent, saying we shouldn’t use drones to summarily execute Americans on US soil?

I can’t figure out what the upside of this is for McCain. I see AP’s thought at the end that he is being petty because he is no longer the “maverick” in the party.

I don’t know if you swim this hard upstream and Lindsay Graham goes with you to do this. They seem caught up in an establishment idea that may explain it better. They seem to think, even though they can’t win elections, that they are going to win elections by being the “adults” in the room and discussing American Drone attacks on American soil is so outrageous that the public will view Republicans as unserious. What the public really sees is Rand Paul defending a no-brainer that the President should go along with without debate. McCain can’t seem to see it is Obama that looks like he isn’t the adult in the room if he can’t give in on drone strikes against Americans on American soil. It is like he (and the other establishment Senators) are so stuck on a model of who the low-information voter is that they can’t perceive any other reality.

He wasnt asked about Rubio? I think that ruffles him a lot too. The guy’s just so out there now.

Flapjackmaka on March 8, 2013 at 10:46 AM

McCain has to keep his mouth shut about Rubio and play nice if he wants the immigration reform bill passed. But considering how tone deaf his reaction was to this, it wouldn’t shock me if he did something to piss off Rubio. I get the sense that he doesn’t like the fact that bunches of cameras follow Rubio around now instead of him. (He made a bitter remark at the immigration reform bill about Rubio being “new” to this issue.)

I think that this is petty jealousy. About ten years ago, McCain was the cool, hip Maverick. He used to be the Republican that all the college kids liked and was the one who got invited to the Daily Show and to host SNL. (As an aside, all my contemporaries who loved McCain also listed to Rage Against the Machine.) Now, Rand Paul is the one who is getting applauded for his courageous stand and reaping the positive press. Marco Rubio is the Republican who is considered hip and in tune with pop culture. McCain is a crabby old relic.

Don’t know much about Amash, but that’s all I need to know to get behind him.

CTSherman on March 8, 2013 at 10:47 AM

Statement from Justin Amash, MI. 3rd. congressional district.
Justin Amash
Thanks to United States Senator Mike Lee and Senator Ted Cruz for joining Senator Rand Paul’s filibuster of John Brennan. The American people stand with you against the unconstitutional use of drones to assassinate Americans on U.S. soil. It’s time for the Obama administration to make clear that such a policy is unconscionable and illegal.
Wednesday at 12:26pm

Question for my fellow hawks: Is this really the hill to die on vis-a-vis paleocon/libertarian foreign policy?

-Annalpundti

And since when did not wholeheartedly supporting Any War, Anywhere, Antyime for Any Reason make one a PaleoCon/Libertarian?

It doesn’t. I think Mr. Annal P just pulled this from his annus. Talk about false choices, false dichotomy and full of doo-doo. Talk about turning reality upon it’s head, when being Conservative has come to mean being Neo-Conservative and not being Neo-Conservative makes you FoolioCon/Stonertarian.

I guess it makes sense if you can work out the “profits to earnings ratios”.

Nope, and they’ll blame it on people moving to Arizona from California. Never mind that the vast majority of people moving out of California moved to California from other states in the Union in the first place, it will still be California’s fault.

Not the least part of the problem for McCain and his mini-me is the optics of all this. Rand Paul filibustering adressing a legitimate and serious Constitutional question that Eric Holder and Brennan never clearly answered. At the very same time, these two losers were among the hand picked RINOs noshing with the rat-eared wonder in a posh hotel owned by a big fundraiser (who once actually got caught trading votes for cigarettes outside a homeless shelter)

I’ve long thought that it was nasty people on McCain’s staff that did all the petty stuff to undermine Sarah Palin. Now I’m not too sure it wasn’t the cranky old bastard himself.

Back up a little bit here, guys! Can you believe this? Anonymous leakers and “senior strategists” are actually coming down on the base’s side for once and against McCain! Can anyone EVER remember this happening before? Anyone?

Doomberg on March 8, 2013 at 11:03 AM

No, it almost feels like they can see the change coming and are jumping ship..

But considering how tone deaf his reaction was to this, it wouldn’t shock me if he did something to piss off Rubio. I get the sense that he doesn’t like the fact that bunches of cameras follow Rubio around now instead of him. (He made a bitter remark at the immigration reform bill about Rubio being “new” to this issue.)

I doubt Rubio will support it. He hasnt gone once to the WH to talk about the issue. He jumped on board to be seen as a reformer and he’ll fight Obama at the same time by fighting back. His support will make or break the bill and he knows it. McCain is just so inept at the political game it’s amazing. I like how young republicans are getting it. You have to always campaign and treat people like idiots to survive.

Re: The attacks on McCain this week…
say what you will, but at least you guys are inconsistent.

verbaluce on March 8, 2013 at 11:00 AM

Let me see if I’ve got this straight, Verbaluce, the Obama-Firster:

You are against the death penalty for convicted murderers because they might be innocent, but you support Obama’s claimed power to deprive Americans of due process and summarily execute them because they might be guilty.

Do I have that right?

Oh, and you were right there with him during the previous administration when he said:

“Ya know, these Bush GWOT policies and the Patriot Act just don’t go far enough! We need to be able to pick up Americans on US soil, deny them due process and hold them indefinitely without trial even at Gitmo or, hell, just rain a fell Hellfire missiles on their heads while they are at Friday prayers in Dearbornistan!”

“I think it can be harmful if there is a belief among the American people that those people are reflective of the views of the majority of Republicans. They’re not,” he continued.

I asked McCain to clarify who, specifically, he was talking about.

“Rand Paul, Cruz, Amash, whoever,” McCain said…

Exactly our point – and your problem, Mr. McCain – they *don’t* represent the views of a majority of Republicans. But that doesn’t reflect poorly on that list of folks – it reflects poorly on *you* and “a majority of Republicans” who, like you, are limp-wristed leftist facilitating useful idiots.

Yeah, let’s all jump on the ComityTrain! It has worked so well so far! For Democrats.

Juan, what Rand did was capture the national imagination on a conservative cause in a way you have never been able to. But my local newspaper didn’t even have to report on the resolution the Dems voted down – they just said Rand “ended” his filibuster, as if he gave up. You know why they didn’t have to report the whole story John? BECAUSE YOU STEPPED ON IT, YOU JERK!

“You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately… Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!” – Cromwell, to the Rump Parliament (how fitting)

Good thing Zona has been drifting more heavily red over the past few years, so I’m not worried about losing this seat even if this fossil hangs it up before ’16 – even in a POTUS election cycle. And if he doesn’t retire, then he definitely needs to be primaried.

The encouraging thing, here, is that McCain and Graham are isolating themselves with this embarrassing display. When you have the RNC encouraging Republican senators to support Paul, as well as at least one Dem show up somewhat in support, it’s pretty clear his was not a fringe position. They’re looking increasingly ridiculous by reacting so hysterically to a very simple, but very important, question regarding the limits of presidential power.

Nope, and they’ll blame it on people moving to Arizona from California. Never mind that the vast majority of people moving out of California moved to California from other states in the Union in the first place, it will still be California’s fault.

SWalker on March 8, 2013 at 11:06 AM

Yeah, having lived here in AZ for the last decade I can tell you it isn’t the California transplants that keep electing McCain (the CA people vote Democrat). It’s the geriatric crowd. The Sun City types and the snowbirds with AZ residency who like McCain’s octagenarian status and ignore his policies. Plus they listen to the local “conservative” hosts on KFYI which are all huge rinos and treat McCain like a god.

But my local newspaper didn’t even have to report on the resolution the Dems voted down – they just said Rand “ended” his filibuster, as if he gave up. You know why they didn’t have to report the whole story John? BECAUSE YOU STEPPED ON IT, YOU JERK!

“You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately… Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!” – Cromwell, to the Rump Parliament (how fitting)

Such monumental egos, that they look for every possible opportunity to skewer people who are supposedly on their own side.

BD57 on March 8, 2013 at 11:06 AM

IMO, they are seriously pissed that these first-termers are getting all the attention and not paying due deference to their seniors. McCain is in his fifth term damnit! How dare a first-termer upstage somebody with seniority.

I don’t agree with everything Rand Paul supports but I do know this. McCain is in the wrong in not standing on the side of making it clear that Americans can not be taken out by the President on American soil. To call it nonsense that such a scenerio would ever happen shows just how out of touch and irrelevant the cranky old bastard has become.

And BTW, It is McCain and Graham that are being absolutely trashed on local talk radio today.